See the Sun
by chattypandagurl
Summary: [COMPLETE] After the events of Chris Crossed, Chris mourns for Bianca in a self destructive way. Piper tries to help him see the sun again, and in the process discovers Chris's big, shocking secret. Two Shot.
1. Part One

This is a two shot story, centering on Piper and Chris's relationship as mother and son as well as Chris and Bianca. It takes place a little bit after "Chris-Crossed". For any of you who read _Fragments, _I'm working on that, I swear! I just had to get this song and story out of my head first; it wouldn't leave me alone! Enjoy, and reviews would be much appreciated!

Disclaimer: I don't own Chris, Bianca, or anything from _Charmed, _nor do I own Dido's song "See the Sun". Song lyrics will be centered, bold, and italicized.

* * *

"Damn it!"

Chris furiously threw the sacred Book of Shadows to the floor with irreverence, and proceeded to kick the floor with all his might, rubbing scuff marks onto his shoes.

"_Shit_." Knocked over candles had caused the rug to catch fire, and he frantically tired to stamp it out. Failing miserably, he quickly thought up of the first rhymes he could –

_From angry gestures come this fire_

_The need to extinguish very dire_

_This fire feeding on rug's crease_

_Cut me some slack and cease!_

The fire was instantly put out, although the rug was still considerably burned. Chris grimaced; that was Piper's favorite rug, if he remembered correctly.

Oh, he'd definitely get grounded for this back home.

But right now he wasn't home, and since Bianca –he was alone. All alone in this house of strangers.

Alone with the damn _Elders_ who wouldn't let him say goodbye to the woman he loved! _Love__s_, he reminded himself. Bianca was gone –but only in the future. He could save them from that world, save her, save _Wyatt. _

It was all just too much; every emotion he had pent up all his life assaulted him as he collapsed onto his knees, sobbing uncontrollably. All the energy he had possessed earlier was gone. Now, he just felt weak and fragmented. Another part of him was dead now.

Slowly, one by one, all of his loved ones had died. Piper, Paige, Phoebe, Darryl, Sheila, D.J., Melinda, Penelope, many Resistance members, and now Bianca. Wyatt, too, was lost in a way, but the lingering part of the big brother Chris remembered gave him hope.

Chris had started to think that he was losing his humanity, that his forced calm and attempts to stay collected and emotionless was causing him to lose himself. He remembered how, under grey November skies and sharp wind, he hadn't cried. Unlike his father's anguished sobs or his brother's silent tears, his eyes had remained painfully dry during his mother's funeral. He had already used up all his tears crying over his mother's dying body as he'd cried out to his father, brother, aunts, _anybody_, to come and heal her. To save her.

When he had realized that nobody was coming, rage and hatred had taken over Chris like a virus. His previous reluctance to use magic forgotten, he had immediately orbed down to the Underworld, found his mother's murderer, and slaughtered the demon and his family. Only his merciless eyes displayed any emotion as he'd watched them die.

Eventually, Wyatt had come, apologizing for not coming earlier; he couldn't get out of class. But when he saw a shaking Chris covered in blood, kneeling next to his mother's prone body, Wyatt had rushed to her side and attempted to heal her. Once he had realized that it was no use, he had diverted his attention to his brother, who silently sat there, staring ahead with glazed eyes.

Chris had never cried, until now.

His thoughts were interrupted when he heard footsteps stomping up the stairs. Not just any shoes; the familiar sound of Paige's stilettos. Chris orbed out just as Piper opened the door to an empty room.

"It looks like someone attacked while we were gone," Paige observed, gingerly placing the Book of Shadows in its rightful spot, keeping her finger in the page it had been opened to. The Book had been upside down, its pages bent, but it was definitely open.

Piper noticed this and frowned. "So it wasn't an attack. A demon couldn't have opened the book." Stiffening slightly, she noticed the candles on the floor and the burnt rug.

_That was my favorite rug._ Her frown deepened. Candles, burnt rug, opened Book of Shadows –

"Paige? What spell is on the open page?"

Her youngest sister opened the Book of Shadows with a raised eyebrow. She met her eldest sister's eyes and turned it around.

"It's the 'To Summon a Spirit' spell."

Piper nodded, understanding now. "It's Chris. It's got to be. He must have tried summoning Bianca, and when it didn't work, he –"

"Trashed our attic?" Paige finished dryly. "But why wouldn't he be able to summon Bianca?"

The eldest sister sighed. "When Prue –died, they hadn't let us summon her, and still won't, even now. They say we aren't ready."

Paige nodded sympathetically. "That must have been horrible for you and Phoebe." She turned around and, not finding who she was looking for, frowned. "Where _is _Phoebe?"

"Over here." Phoebe's strained voice came from the coach, her head in her hands.

"What's wrong?"

Phoebe grunted in reply, attempting to expel the overwhelming emotions from her. When she felt fairly calm, she answered, "You're right, Piper. It _is _Chris. I mean, usually I can't feel anything off him. But now –I can feel _everything_, and even the backwash is giving me a migraine."

"Someone needs to talk to him! He has a right to mourn, but not by destroying our attic or doing something stupid that could piss someone off and endanger us and Wyatt!" Piper exclaimed, throwing her hands up.

Both of her younger sisters stared at her pointedly.

"What?" Piper demanded, feeling unnerved by the suggestive looks her sisters were giving her, "You want _me _to go?"

Phoebe and Paige nodded enthusiastically.

"Why me?" Piper complained, "Why not Phoebe? _She's _the empath!"

"What, do you wantme to faint? I already have a headache, thanks." Phoebe retorted.

Paige added, "_And _you're the oldest sister and the only mother, so you'll know what to do to calm him down."

"WellI'd calm Wyatt down by picking him up, making shushing sounds, or giving him his teddy bear. Somehow I don't think that'll work with Chris."

"Oh, quit your whining and just do it!" Paige scolded, rolling her eyes dramatically.

Something akin to disgust possessed her face for a moment before she finally caved. "Ugh, okay, fine, fine, I'll do it. But we need to find out where he is. Phoebe, get the scrying stuff out."

* * *

Chris grinned in satisfaction as he watched the demon scream in agony, merciless flames licking its body until it combusted into ash. He couldn't stop; athame met heart, and another demon fell.

The adrenaline and thrill was addicting, especially when accented by rage. Chris now knew why Bianca had always loved the kill. She had left that life, left that thrill, for him –but she missed it, he could tell. Every time she vanquished a demon out of necessity, she had always worn a dangerous smile dancing on her crimson lips. At first, it had scared him, a part of him fearing that she would turn again to that bloodlust; however, she would eventually prove herself to be loyal. Whatever else could be said about the former assassin, she always kept her promises.

When he was little, Chris had never been allowed to go out on demon vanquishes. His mom had always said that they were too dangerous, and Chris was too young. After his mom died, he had to teach himself, expanding on the secret martial arts lessons he had been taking with his aunt.

"_It's our little secret." _When every day became a struggle to survive, he would find these skills just as useful as his witch and whitelighter powers.

Still, despite his training, he'd almost got his ass kicked by a girl.

_Chris stopped in the middle of the dim, forlorn street, and listened hard. Unsurprised to hear nothing but silence, he walked on. His whitelighter senses were screaming at him, warning him about the assassin that was following him. But he had no intention of running away. This particular assassin had been after him for months, nearly getting him in several close calls. Chris was determined to turn the tables and get her off his back._

_When he heard what he was listening for, Chris smiled and pushed his hidden athame out from the inside of his jacket's sleeve, intercepting the dagger before it could slice a hole in his shoulder. _

"_You know, this is getting kind of old." He caught a flash of movement in the corner of his eye. _

_With a flick of his wrist, the athame went flying. Chris cursed when he heard the athame strike wood and a cat screech in agitation at the close call. _

_A hard kick to the back of his knees sent his crashing to the ground. Guessing, Chris thrust his elbow backwards and hit flesh. Satisfied at the grunt of pain behind him, he orbed and rematerialized behind her. _

_But the assassin was ready. She turned around and thrust the palm of her hand into Chris's nose. He backed away as pain shot up his nose –quickly wiping it, he noticed blood flowing freely. Unprepared, he received a kick to the chest, which made him fall again. Lashing his leg out in a half circle, he heard the _thump _of a body falling in front of him._

_Suddenly, something was on top of him, and the assassin threw some dirt into his eyes, temporarily blinding him. Trying to regain some control, Chris rolled himself on top. But the assassin didn't allow him to stay there for long, and soon she grabbed his shoulders and reversed their roles. The two ended up rolling around on the ground until they had reached a circle of light underneath the only working lamppost on the street. _

_Just as the assassin whipped out her athame, Chris used his telekinesis to summon his own athame. Both put their respective weapons at the other's neck. _

_Chris could hear both of their ragged breaths, but although he'd never seen the assassin so closely before, only enough to determine her gender, he wasn't looking at her. Instead, his eyes were on her athame. _

_On it, the design on the handle was one of a phoenix rising from flames; it was definitely different from Chris's athame, which was embellished with the Triquetra. The phoenix design looked really familiar, but he couldn't quite put his finger on where he had seen it before –_

_That's when he finally looked up at the assassin. As he took in her striking features, he gasped._

"_Bianca?" _

"_Hello Chris," she said dryly. "Surprised to see me?" _

_A silent truce was accepted by both, and they put down their weapons. _

"You're _the one who's been trying to kill me?" _

_Bianca smiled slightly. "I've never aimed to kill. Wyatt strictly forbade it." _

"_Oh, but I guess maiming me is within the rules?" Chris exclaimed sarcastically, which only made Bianca smile wider. Being sarcastic had always been one of Chris's key personality traits. _

_The Phoenix assassin chuckled. "You haven't changed a bit." Her smile faded. "But your brother has, a lot." _

_Chris nodded grimly, wholeheartedly agreeing with her. "I'm assuming he hired you, right? Not some other demon offering you a hell of a bounty?" _

_Bianca frowned. "It's not like I had a choice! Wyatt enslaved my clan on pain of death. It's a far cry from the good old says, huh Chris?" she added bitterly. _

_The Halliwell nodded. When Chris had been five and Bianca nine, the Charmed Ones had crossed paths with Bianca's mother, Lynn. It turned out that Lynn's target had been the same demon that the Charmed Ones were after. Alone, neither party had been able to vanquish the demon, but together they eventually defeated it. _

_While they were out vanquishing, Lynn had left Bianca at the Manor with Wyatt and Chris. Since Bianca and Wyatt were older, they had gotten along pretty quickly, and had a lot of fun teasing Chris. _

_Needless to say, five-year-old Chris hadn't been too happy about this._

_Over the years, the Charmed Ones and Lynn collaborated on many tough demon vanquishes. Every time they did, Bianca would be dropped off at the Manor, no matter how old she was. As they got older, Chris wasn't teased about being a baby, and the three actually ended up pretty good friends, although they didn't see much of each other outside of those visit; still, they had a good time when they did. _

_Chris smiled at the memory of his mother's face when she'd came home and saw what they were doing. _

"_What are you smiling at?" _

"_Just remembering that one time when my mom caught you teaching us how to throw athames." _

_Bianca's smile matched Chris's as she, too, was caught in reminiscence, "Yeah, I remember…she was _pissed!_" _

_They were silent for a moment until Chris voiced a question, "So –how does Wyatt treat you? Like crap or like he knows you?"_

_Bianca shrugged noncommittally, "A little better, I think. After all, I get the best targets." She met eyes with Chris, which he took to mean that meant him._

"_So what now? We can't sit here forever. You going to hand me in to Wyatt or what?" _

_The assassin bit her lip, her expression troubled. "What else can I do? Wyatt's running out of patience; if I don't get you soon, he'll get rid of me like he got rid of the others in my Coven." Bianca's eyes flashed dangerously as she snarled, "Of course, he won't get me without a fight!" _

_Chris smiled. He knew how skilled she was at fighting. But he knew he could never allow her to take him in, and he couldn't let allow her to go back to Wyatt and meet her death. Although this could be a potential trap, Chris decided the risk was worth it, and if Bianca turned out to be a traitor . . . they'd get rid of her. _

"_How about we make our own choice? You can come back with me to the Resistance, and we can work together. You'd get a place to say, and we'd get Intel and one heck of a fighter. What do you think? Do you want to work _with_ me or _for _Wyatt?" _

_Bianca didn't have to think very long. There was nothing left for her back there anyway –her mother was dead, and the rest of her Coven has lost their pride, their independence. For instead of unwillingly and fighting with reluctance in carrying out Wyatt's orders, they kissed his feet and bowed before him. _

"_Okay." _

Chris paused to admire the design on the athame's handle, a phoenix, deadly and beautiful at the same time, like Bianca. When his own athame, passed down from his mother, had been lost in the chaos of a battle, Bianca gave her family heirloom to him before he left for the past. She said that if he used that athame, it'd be like having her fighting alongside him.

And she was right. Every close call he gracefully got out of in this frenzy of killing was because of Bianca, of what she'd shown him. He felt like she was right there with him, guiding him to safety.

With that in mind, Chris used one of the maneuvers Bianca had taught him to strike down another demon . . . and another . . . and another . . . and another . . .

* * *

Piper was still grumbling as she approached the neurotic whitelighter's room within P3. They had scried for almost twenty minutes until Chris _finally _surfaced. Piper for one was glad he had chosen to go to P3 instead of on top of his perch on the Golden Gate Bridge. The eldest Halliwell sister was feeling some resentment towards her sisters for forcing her to go talk to Chris. Paige had orbed her there, chirped "Good luck!" and orbed out, all the while ignoring Piper's scowl.

Pausing at Chris's door, Piper took a deep breath and knocked.

There was no answer.

"Chris? It's Piper. I need to talk to you." Piper listened for any movement. She frowned when her ears touched silence, and wondered if he'd moved since when they'd scried for him. Still, never being one to back out or let go of things easily, she knocked again, this time harder, faster, and with an impatient air.

"_Chris . . ._ I know you're in there . . . open up." Piper paused again and, still finding Chris silent, started to get annoyed. "You know what? This is _my _club, so you sure as heck are going to open the damn door or I swear to god I will blow your ass back to the future!"

Once she calmed down and realized what she had said, Piper winced. That wasn't a very gentle approach to face someone in mourning at all . . . if someone had talked to her like that when Prue died Piper would have kicked their butt from there to the moon. _Way to go, Piper, let's threaten the man who just lost his fiancé. Very sensitive to his feelings. _

As he heard Piper fumble with her keys on the other side of the door, Chris closed his eyes miserably.

_Go away, _he thought desperately. The last thing he needed was the woman who looked and talked like his mother to yell at him for littering her attic. And he really didn't want to be blown up. He wouldn't die, but it'd hurt like crazy, and Chris really didn't think he could handle physical pain in addition to his emotional turmoil. The funny thing though was that he believed that she really _would _blow him up. It was a very Piper thing to do, especially to someone she disliked.

Chris managed to find a jacket in the soothing darkness and pull a jacket around himself, zipping it up as high as it could go. He didn't want to get busted. If Piper saw the state he was in, he knew she'd go into mother mode, no matter who it concerned, and call for Leo, who would just make Chris's unstable emotions worse.

He tired to get up when he heard the _creek _of a door opening, but winced and laid back down, completely exhausted.

Piper blinked as her eyes adjusted to the depressing darkness Chris had situated himself in. She flipped on the lights and saw that the whitelighter was wide awake and staring at her with an irritated expression. Piper flinched when she met the gaze of his haunted eyes.

"So," he said very quietly, "You've come to yell at me?"

The Charmed One shook her head sadly. Is that really what he thought of her? Always yelling, always angry?

_**I'm coming round to open the blinds**_

_**You can't hide here any longer**_

_**My god you need to rinse those puffy eyes**_

_**You can't lie still any longer**_

Piper gestured to the chair in front of Chris's desk, silently asking permission for her to sit there. His reply was an unconcerned shrug. Piper took that as a "yes".

When she took a better look at Chris's condition, Piper saw that his eyes were red and swollen, a sign that he had been crying. Piper was kind of scared to see her usually emotionless whitelighter look so defeated. He _was _human, after all, she realized. He was hurting, and hurting bad; she could see it in his stormy green eyes.

Chris looked at her expectantly, waiting for her to say something.

"So . . . where have you been? We've been calling you." Piper lied. Telling him that they had scried for him probably wouldn't be a good idea.

He shrugged. "Around." Piper narrowed her eyes in suspicion at the way Chris kept on adjusting his jacket. Once the initial clue set in, she noticed how ragged his breathing was, and how hard he was trying to control it, hide it from her. Chris's voice sounded weak, and she could see a bloody cut very close to his neck.

Chris squirmed under Piper's sharp gaze, knowing very well that she was very observant already without him being her son. Mothers just _knew _things, no matter what timeline their children came from. _She knows. _

"Take off your jacket." She commanded suddenly.

"Why? I'm cold." Chris fibbed, attempting to set her off course.

"Yeah, well you can bear being cold for one second. Take it off."

Slowly and reluctantly, Chris pried his jacket off his bruised shoulder, knowing that if need be Piper would rip it off if he didn't, much more painfully. If Chris even had the energy to orb, he wouldn't. The so-called trust between them was already strained, and he didn't want to get kicked out, especially with it being so close to the deadline.

Piper's eyes widened as she saw the blood staining Chris's shirt. The shoulder was soaked through and through with bright red blood, and a once white linen was wrapped around Chris's stomach, masking a very serious wound. Several cuts and burns were scattered along his arms. Piper was shocked that he didn't look more in agony. But then, judging by the strain in his eyes, Chris was used to disguising his pain.

She gaped at her whitelighter, eyes asking a silent question.

_**And yes they'll ask you where you've been**_

_**And you'll have to tell them, again and again**_

"I did a little demon hunting," he mumbled, feeling lightheaded. _Probably from the loss of blood. _He thought wistfully.

"A _little _demon hunting?" Piper repeated.

Chris sighed and put a bandaged hand to his forehead. "Just two demon clans."

Piper frowned disapprovingly, not sure whether or not to be impressed that he single handedly took on two demon clans and survived, or to scold him for being so stupid.

That look she was giving usually resulted in him looking down at his sneakers in shame, guilty for whatever he'd done. However, it had no effect on Chris now. He just stared back at her unblinkingly waiting for her to start a reprimand. When it didn't come, Chris shrugged, unconcerned and asked, "That it?"

He immediately regretted it, for when those words came out of his mouth Piper yelled, "LEO!"

"What are you doing?" Chris demanded. Having _one _parent there was bad enough, but together . . . great. Just great. He was _so _going to get it. Since Leo was an Elder in this timeline, he could ask him to let him see Bianca one last time. Unfortunately, Chris doubted Leo would allow it; he never completely approved of Chris dating Bianca in the future when Leo actually knew her. Chris had no high expectations for _this _Leo. He seriously doubted the Elder would allow Bianca, albeit a spirit Bianca, back into the Manor, especially if his first impression of her was an assassin trying to kill Chris.

"Getting Leo to heal your wounds," Piper explained calmly, "We can't just let you _bleed _to death."

Chris glared at her. "Since when did you _care_ about my well being?" he snapped, the thought of Leo being there soon bringing the worst out of him.

The familiar chime of orbs interrupted Piper in mid retort, which disappeared to reveal a confused Leo. "Piper? What's wrong?"

"Healing, now," Piper commanded briskly, pointing to Chris, not even bothering to greet her ex-husband with a hello.

"What happened?" Leo asked, a golden glow emitting from beneath his fingertips. Chris could have sworn there was _concern _in his estranged father's voice, but he didn't count on it.

Piper threw Chris an accusing glance before answering sarcastically, "Oh, Chris decided to try and get himself killed by tackling two demon clans."

"You did _what?_ Chris, I thought you understood that trust works both ways! You should have told us immediately when you were in trouble. These wounds are really bad."

Chris rolled his eyes, seeing the irony of this as the lightheadedness faded. Even when Piper and Leo distrusted him, hell, _hated _him, they still somehow manage to act like parents and treat him like a stupid little kid.

Shifting himself into a sitting position, Chris said, "Look, I'm sorry I didn't come to you for healing, okay? I just needed to be alone and . . . deal with this."

"Chris, this kind of behavior is self-destructive. If you die, who's going to save Wyatt?"

Leo meant well, trying to pull him out of his depression by giving him a reason to live, but the mention of his big brother only made Chris's blood boil. The memory of Wyatt killing Bianca flashed through his mind. If it weren't for Wyatt, Bianca would be alive. If it weren't for Wyatt, Chris wouldn't have to come to the past and deal with the fact that his family hates him. If it weren't for Wyatt, the world would be like it was now, in this time: relatively happy.

_**And you probably don't want to hear tomorrow's another day**_

_**But I promise you you'll see the sun again**_

_**And you're asking me why pain's the only way to happiness**_

_**And I promise you you'll see the sun again**_

They were still trying to save him from himself. Chris wanted to shout his frustration, vent his emotions out of him, and stop them from eating him up inside, so bad that it hurt. But he knew he couldn't. Even now, on the brink, Chris refused to tell them his true identity. He'd only regret it later, when he remembered his mission.

"You can mourn, Chris, but you shouldn't become . . . _violent,_" Piper was saying.

"Don't be a hypocrite." Chris snapped harshly, "_You _became a Fury when Prue died."

Piper flinched and looked as if Chris had slapped her. She narrowed her eyes, her tone vicious and dangerous. "That was different."

"How?" Chris retorted. "Even if the Fury thing _was _different, you still went around chasing after every single evil thing you could find, and almost got you, Phoebe, and Cole killed, if you remember _that _tiny detail!"

Before Piper could bite back, Leo interrupted, "How do you know all this anyway?"

Chris didn't answer for a moment. Both Piper and Leo expected him to say "Future consequences," the phrase he loved so much. But instead, Chris decided to go with a half truth.

"I learned the Charmed Ones' history at Magic School."

"Magic School?" Piper asked, all anger forgotten as she turned to Leo, "As in _Harry Potter-_esque Magic School? It's not called Hogwarts by any chance?"

The question was directed at Chris, who smiled wryly. "No. But there's a school called Hogwarts in England. Although there is no Harry Potter or Albus Dumbledore. J.K. Rowling made that up. She's a witch too, by the way; she went to Hogwarts. That's why the books are so detailed and huge. She changed some things, of course, so it wouldn't expose the actual school too much."

Piper looked surprised for moment, but then remembered what she was trying to say before.

"We're getting off the subject."

The smile was wiped off Chris's face. He had seen the seriousness back in Piper's eyes.

"What, no more small talk?" Chris spat, feeling more and more suffocated by his parent's presence, "You going to tell, _again, _that I'm being an idiot? That I'm being self-destructive and will get myself killed? Well, you can save it, because I know what you _really _feel about me! You don't give a damn what happens to me, so stop pretending like you do!"

Leo's eyes flashed, but he managed to keep his voice calm, like all the others in Elder Land told him to, "I know you're angry right now, but everything will get better soon, you'll see."

Piper closed her eyes when she heard Leo say this. Speaking to him so impersonally, as if he were speaking to some bad hormonal teenager and not to someone who was fragile, pissed, and had just experienced a truly heartbreaking loss, was a mistake. Chris would definitely not take this well. It didn't help that everything Leo did seemed to anger the young man, even recently when they seemed to get along better.

"No it won't! It _won't _get better!" Chris felt like such a whiny little bratty kid at that moment, but honestly, he didn't care. He just wanted to get this _worm _of emotions out of him. "How the hell do _you _know?! You didn't live in my future, how could you possibly know what it feels like to have someone you loved _killed _in front of your eyes, the _very last person _you had left in the world? What would you know about loss? What do you know about watching your family –mother, aunts, and cousins –die, _murdered?_"

"Chris, I understand–" Piper began, but Chris cut her up.

"No! No you don't!" Chris yelled, facing her now, eyes blazing in fury. A torrent of emotions was coming out of him. He knew it wasn't their fault, but he felt like Bianca dying was _their _doing, that _they _hadn't protected their precious Twice-Blessed, Leo's favorite son, well enough to prevent the hell he came from.

Once he started, Chris just couldn't stop. Even as he realized from the looks on Piper and Leo's faces that he'd said too much, everything just kept on jumbling out of him.

"The future's a mess, thanks to your _precious _son, _and, _as if being the evil overlord of the world wasn't enough, he murdered my fiancé for defending me, protecting me. So I'm _sorry _if I'm an _inconvenience _to your happy little family; Bad Chris's messing up your lives, screwing with the timeline, corrupting your little angel . . . well he isn't much of an angel where I come from. So why don't you make it easy for all of us: stop pretending like you care and _leave me the hell alone_ Mom!"

With an angry huff, Chris orbed out, leaving the stunned couple to soak in the mass of unintentionally given information.

"Wyatt, 'the evil overlord of the world'? I thought Chris was here to protect him from a demon." Leo wondered out loud, still not quite believing this impossible bit of information.

But something else echoed in Piper's mind.

_Leave me alone Mom!_

_Mom. _Chris had called Piper "Mom".

Mom. Piper was Chris's mother. Chris was her son. No, it wasn't possible. He must have meant it sarcastically. But the more she denied it, the more it made sense. Only family would sacrifice everything for family. After all, wasn't it Piper who always intended to teach Wyatt the morals she applied to her sisters and Leo: "Family always comes first."

_Mom. _What a beautiful and heartbreaking word.


	2. Part Two

Wow, thanks for all the reviews! A couple of people were wondering if there are more chapters. **This is the second and final chapter of the story. **Thanks for all the support, and enjoy! Song lyrics are bold and italicized.

**Liz Black: **Oh, wow, how did I miss that? I proofread it but didn't catch that mix up. Yeah . . . that is kind of wrong sounding . . . I'll probably go back and change it later, but I think everyone knew what I meant. Thanks for telling me about the mistake.

* * *

Piper's head hurt. She was still reeling from this recent revelation. Chris, the neurotic, annoying, mysterious whitelighter from the future, was her son, a child that hasn't even been conceived yet! She wrinkled her nose as she thought about that fact. _Talk about performance anxiety, _Piper thought.

Speaking of performance anxiety . . . Piper glanced at Leo, wondering if he'd caught Chris's slip of the tongue. He was probably still stuck on the fact that Wyatt is evil.

Oh god! Wyatt's evil! Chris came back to save his big brother! How could Wyatt possibly be anything _but _the greatest source of Good ever? The cute little boy that giggled when she tickled him and loved his ducky pajamas couldn't possibly be a monster.

She had to find out for sure. She _needed _to know if this is one of Chris's schemes. Chris, who might be her son. _God, my life is messed up. _All in a day's work for a Charmed One.

"Leo! Can you sense him?" Piper asked sharply.

"What? Who, Wyatt?" Leo asked, looking as if he'd just been snapped out of a nightmare.

So he _was _thinking about Wyatt. "No, Chris."

Looking confused as to why Piper was concerned about Chris when their son is going to become evil, Leo closed his eyes and searched for the emotionally unstable whitelighter. Unfortunately, he could only sense pain, pain that was muddled in with the rest of the city. "No, I think he's blocking me."

"Damn," Piper muttered, growling in frustration. "Orb me back home and try to find him, will you?"

"Why?" Leo asked. "It's obvious he doesn't want to talk to us. I say leave him alone."

Piper really wanted to strangle her ex-husband in that moment. _Because your son could hurt himself! _Piper wanted to scream. But she couldn't, because she knew that Leo would waste precious time in being shocked and ranting about Chris's lies while they needed to find Chris _now. _

"Just orb me home," Piper snapped. Leo sighed and lightly touched her elbow, engulfing them in warm orbs.

The matriarch moved away from Leo the instant her feet touched solid ground and found her sisters sipping coffee in the kitchen.

"Oh, hey Piper, how'd it –go?" Phoebe's voice faltered a little when she saw Hurricane Piper storm into the room, her expression determined.

"Where's the scrying crystal?" she demanded, not even bothering to acknowledge her sister's question.

"In the attic." Paige answered, eyebrows scrunched in confusion. "Piper, what's wrong?"

But Piper was already sprinting up the stairs. After exchanging worried looks, Phoebe noticed Leo standing timidly in the doorway. "What happened, Leo?"

Leo, who looked like he'd rather be anywhere but here, answered with a shaky voice, "Chris got angry and let some things slip."

"Ooh!" Phoebe exclaimed suddenly, her eyes widening in excitement, "He finally slipped up? Tell, tell! C'mon, let's hear it!"

Leo's expression couldn't have been graver. "He said that Wyatt is the 'evil overlord of the world' and that Wyatt's the one who murdered his fiancé."

"Oh." Phoebe's expression deflated. "You know, he could be lying, Leo."

Leo slumped down on a chair wearily. "I know. But that was the most honest reaction I've ever seen from him and . . ."

". . . when people are angry, they let things slip that they didn't mean to say?" Paige finished softly, her eyes gentle.

"Yeah." Leo looked at his sisters-in-laws with an apologetic smile, "Sorry, but I have to go and –just think." With that, he orbed out to on top of Golden Gate Bridge.

Meanwhile, upstairs in the attic, Piper's scrying crystal just landed. Piper's eyebrows knitted together, confused. Why had Chris chosen to go there?

_My son's burden alone he cannot bear_

_Let me help and take me there_

She half expected, half hoped it wouldn't work, because Chris wasn't her son. All the same, when warm white lights surrounded her, Piper wasn't surprised. She took in the beautiful, calm park and felt the light breeze blowing her hair back. She saw Chris's lone figure, sitting on a stone bench, his head leaned back against a marble statue in the shape of an angel. Piper smiled, finding the spot strangely appropriate for the half witch, half whitelighter. Chris looked deep in thought, lost in his memories.

And he was. Chris sensed Piper's presence the instant she materialized there, but chose to ignore her, instead filling his vision with images of Bianca.

_Will you marry me?_

Chris smiled as he recalled Bianca's astonished smile, the happiness dancing in her eyes.

Finally, he couldn't ignore Piper's on looking eyes anymore. He'd known all along that she'd come. Chris had been horrified when he'd realized he'd let slip that Wyatt was evil. Piper was scarily protective sometimes, and he knew she, Leo, or both, would come and confront him about it. This talk was simply unavoidable, and simply a part of a painful experience Chris did _not_ want to think about right now.

"What are you doing here, Piper?"

Piper flinched at how cold and dead his voice sounded. Judging from the way Chris called her "Piper," he hadn't yet realized that particular slip up.

"I was worried."

"Yeah? Well, you shouldn't be. I'm fine." He replied, his tone icy and unconcerned. "I thought I told you to leave me alone."

Piper smiled sadly and sat down next to her son, who, to her surprise, raised no objections to her sitting there. She had lost time to connect with her son, and she was determined to help him through this trauma, just as Leo and her sisters had guided her through losing Prue. Piper knew better than anyone that the pain will never go away, that she will always miss Prue, will always be wondering why, will always think of the way her dead eyes stared up at Piper at the most random times. She also knew that you have to move on, and use the death and memory of the lost loved one to become a stronger person.

_**Come on, take my hand**_

_**We're going for a walk, I know you can**_

_**You can wear anything, as long as it's not black**_

_**Please don't mourn forever, she's not coming back**_

"You're not wearing black," Piper observed, breaking the stony silence.

Chris looked up at her in surprise. That wasn't what Chris had expected to come out of Piper's mouth.

"Bianca hated black." He answered simply.

Piper raised an eyebrow. "She wore black leather."

"That's my point. When she was a freelance assassin, she never wore black leather, and almost never wore black when she was in regular clothes. She said life was too short to be gloomy all the time." Chris smiled sadly at the irony. "She was right. Anyway, when Wyatt enslaved the labors of her Coven and forced them to wear black leather 'uniforms,' that made Bianca hate the color more. She thought of it as a color of slavery and bondage."

The Charmed One was surprised that Chris was offering information so freely. That was a bad sign if Chris was suddenly gave up his "Future Consequences" attitude. It meant he didn't care anymore.

"Come on, let's take a walk," Piper suggested, getting up and offering Chris a hand.

He stared at her hand blankly. "Why?"

"Walks are good for clearing your head."

_But I don't _want _to clear my head, _Chris thought numbly. He never wanted to forget Bianca, to clear his head of her. That's what really scared him –the idea that he'll forget how she looked, how she smelled, how her lips felt against his.

Piper's gaze was so warm, gentle, and motherly that Chris was momentarily back in his future, when his mom was alive. Piper looked so much like Mom in that moment that he couldn't bear to turn her down. He accepted her hand and allowed himself to be pulled up, away from his and Bianca's spot.

They walked in silence for a little bit, both feeling at peace, surrounded by whistling wind and dancing trees, the only audible sound being the _crunch _of gravel beneath their feet.

_**And yes they'll ask you where you've been**_

_**And you'll have to tell them, again and again**_

"So . . . Wyatt's really evil? He really made you suffer?"

Chris closed his eyes as the image of Bianca, skewered by a stake stained with her blood, filled his vision. He remembered her ragged breaths and agony filled eyes as she begged him to finish what they started.

Chris had been surprised that Piper had waited this long to ask about Wyatt. She'd made it all about Chris at first, even when she had no reason to. It's not like she knew he was her future son.

"Yeah. The world's pretty messed up."

"Why?" Piper asked, sorrow in her voice, "How could we let this happen? Was I such a horrible mother that I caused my son to turn evil?"

"_No!_" Chris shouted. When he realized what he'd done, Chris blushed and tried to play it off. "Well, from what I've heard, you're a fantastic mom."

He had his face turned away from Piper as he said that, and didn't see the small smile on her face.

_At least Chris turned out Good, although I'll have to teach him not to be manipulative and to _always _tell the truth, _Piper thought cheerfully.

"So where am I in the future? I'd think the Power of Three, or at least his _mother_, could somehow subdue him."

Piper saw Chris stiffen, and a flash of agony crossed his face. He turned to face her, his eyes familiarly guarded. "I can't tell you that. Future consequences. Besides, I've said too much already."

"Well . . . maybe sharing some of the load will be good for you," Piper said, really meaning it.

Chris didn't say anything.

_**And you probably don't want to hear tomorrow's another day**_

_**But I promise you you'll see the sun again**_

_**And you're asking me why pain's the only way to happiness**_

_**And I promise you you'll see the sun again**_

_**And I promise you you'll see the sun again**_

Finally, Chris spoke. "Yeah, well, that'd be kind of selfish of me, wouldn't it? To burden you guys?"

"I think I can handle it." Piper said softly.

"No, you can't!" Chris snapped. "There –there are just things that you can't know!"

He stopped walking. "Listen, Piper, it's nice of you to try and act all concerned and everything, but no matter what you do, I won't be able to tell you everything you want to know. And you'll just get frustrated and hate me even more."

"I don't hate you, Chris." Piper reassured him quietly, her heart breaking. He looked so wounded; Piper didn't know why she'd never noticed the distant pain in his eyes before, pain that was surely there whenever they were cruel to him.

"Sure you don't." Chris muttered, almost to himself. He wrapped his arms around himself as a chilly breeze blew past their faces.

Piper was instantly concerned when she saw this action. "You're cold, Chris!" Piper remembered Chris orbing out without his jacket. He looked freezing in that thin t-shirt.

Chris cast her a wary glance. Seriously, since when did Piper start acting all motherly towards him? "I'm fine; no, _really_, Piper . . . I'm okay. Just leave, _please._"

"No, Chris, not until I know you won't hurt yourself anymore." Piper said sternly. She was determined to help her son.

Chris closed his eyes and tried to mentally push Piper away. Everything he did to distant himself from his family, and especially his mother, was crumbling. Mom was dead; seeing her alive and despising him hurt deeper than anything. He was her little sunshine, her baby. It was okay for a little at first, since Chris thought of Piper and Mom as two separate people. But now –Piper's attitude towards him has changed. As the day passed, the more time Chris spent with her, the more Piper and Mom became one. The clear, distinct lines he'd set in the beginning were starting to fade.

Dealing with Bianca's death was already killing him inside; Chris didn't need to revisit Piper's death as well. He groaned involuntarily as the memories began to shift to the surface along with memories of Bianca. He saw Mom's dull, dead eyes as clearly as he saw Piper's clear, bright eyes.

_**Do you remember telling me you'd found the sweetest thing of all**_

_**You said one day of this was worth dying for**_

_**So be thankful you knew her at all**_

_**But it's not more**_

Chris remembered when he first realized how bad the world had really become.

Since Chris was unable to talk to his relatives as spirits, he often visited his mom's grave and talked to her. He knew a tomb couldn't talk back, but he took comfort in the thought that his mom might be listening in Heaven.

He talked to her about everything –Wyatt, the ruin San Francisco had become, the despair of being alone, and later on, Bianca. Chris was glad to be able to say something happy on those visits, something hopeful. The Halliwell often felt crushed under the load of responsibility on his shoulders. Obviously, he preferred his mother to be alive, but since being in the past, Chris really missed being able to talk to his mom, even if it was a grave.

Ah, heck, maybe he just wanted to see his mom again, like that one time when she answered him.

"_God, Mom, everything's falling apart. Twenty Resistance members died today . . . that's sixty deaths this week! The demons are growing stranger, and they're more organized than ever, thanks to Wyatt. He's found a way to make the demons magic-proof, so now the only way to kill them is through hand to hand combat. Bianca's trying to teach as many as she can . . . but the death toll just keeps on mounting up. Thank god for Bianca; I don't know how I'd manage without her. It's been so hard to keep it together ever since Darryl and D.J. died." _

_As he thought about their old family friends' deaths, his fists clenched in furious anger. "I hate this! I hate that everyone's gone, I hate having to fight my brother, and I hate the Elders and Dad for abandoning us and stranding their whitelighters on Earth to save their own sorry asses! What am I supposed to do?" _

"_You fight." _

_Chris's eyes widened in disbelief when he heard the familiar scolding voice. _No, it can't be! _He kneeled where he was, afraid to turn around, afraid to be disappointed._

"_It's okay, honey." The soft voice reassured him warmly. _

_Slowly, Chris stood up and turned around. The sight before him was impossible. But that didn't stop him from running into his mother's arms like he did when he was a kid. Of course, he was shorter than her then. _

"_Shh, it's okay." Mom said, "The Elders decided you needed some guidance." _

_Chris's smile faded when she mentioned the Elders. "Well, it's about time. Are you sure we're talking about the Elders? For being high up on the Forces of Good hierarchy, they're pretty selfish." _

_Mom grinned mischievously. "Well, since there's nothing to do Up There, I pestered them until they broke and sent me here." _

_  
Grimacing, Chris felt a little sorry for the Elders. Just a little. He knew how his Mom was like in overprotective mode. _

_He opened his mouth to speak, but closed it when he couldn't find the right words. _

"_What is it, baby?" Mom asked, her soothing voice giving Chris strength. _

"_I . . . I missed you," Chris said softly. _

_Mom held him in a tight embrace again. "Oh, I missed you too. I hated sitting Up There, unable to do anything to help you or your brother." _

"_I hate him, Mom!" Chris burst out suddenly, all his anger and frustration building up in those words._

_His mother merely waited until he calmed down. "Is that how you really feel about him? I don't think you hate Wyatt . . . I think you hate the things he did." _

_Chris didn't say anything. As always, his mother saw right through him. The Resistance's main goal was to kill Wyatt and save innocents. Chris usually agreed with them, but maybe, deep inside, all he really wanted to do was save his brother. Mom was right. He didn't want to hate Wyatt, he wanted to love the big brother that protected him, that held on to him during their mother's funeral, quietly rocking him until the tears stopped flowing. _

"_But hey, let's not talk about depressing things right now. I've been listening to our one-sided talks from before, and you've found a girl?" Piper suggested. _

_Chris smiled. "Yeah. Bianca." He hesitated before continuing. Whenever he came to "talk" to Mom, he never mentioned who exactly Bianca was, although he wondered if Mom remembered her mother from a while ago. "She's a witch too." _

_Mom looked intrigued, "Oh, really? Bianca . . . that name sounds familiar. What are her powers?"_

"_Umm . . . she creates energy balls, can suck out people's powers, kicks major butt in hand-to-hand combat, and . . . she can shimmer." Chris paused cautiously, waiting for Mom's judgment on his girlfriend._

_Mom looked extremely suspicious, and smiled wryly. "Bianca wouldn't happen to have a red phoenix birthmark on her wrist, would she?" _

"_Actually, she does. You remember her?" _

_She nodded. "Yes, I remember Lynn dropping her off at our house. I also remember her teaching you and Wyatt how to throw knives." _

_Chris recoiled under his mom's scolding glare. "Athames, actually." _

_Mom snorted at Chris's sarcasm. "Well, other than that incident, I'd liked her well enough. And if she makes you happy and is _not _trying to kill you, I'm happy." _

_Needless to say, Chris decided to not tell his mother how he had met up with her again after all those years. _

"_How old is she again? I can't remember." _

"_She's four years older than me," Chris said. He was happy that Mom reacted pretty well to Bianca, considering the fact that she's an assassin with demonic powers._

_Her eyebrows rose at this new bit of information. "Going for the older women, Chris?" she teased, "You got those genes from me, although your father was a few _decades_ older than me. And dead." _

_Chris wrinkled his nose. "Yeah, I never figured out how you could just forget the fact that he's dead." _

"_Well, how did _you _forget that you're half dead?" _

"_Mom! That's low, that's really low." Chris complained, glaring at her. But he wasn't really mad. He always loved talking to his mom; before, that "half dead" comment was enough to boil his blood, but it was fine when his mom said it. "You know you're insulting Aunt Paige and Penelope too, you know?" _

_Mom grinned mischievously. "Oh, I know." _

_Chris cleared his throat. "Um, how are they, you know, the family . . . Up There?" _

_Mom's grin drooped on the edges a little, the lines of her mouth and eyes sad. "They're dealing; we're all dealing, as a family. It's hard, especially for the kids. They never got a chance to really live out their lives before losing it so young."_

_Nodding in understanding, Chris felt a ripple of magic in the air. He knew it was almost time for Mom to go. "Do you really have to leave so soon?" _

_She looked surprised that Chris could feel that their time was running out. Smiling sadly, she answered, "I do." _

"_Thanks, for being here," Chris said quietly, "I love you Mom." _

"_I love you too," Mom cupped Chris's face with her hands lovingly, eyes bright with unshed tears, "Don't _ever _give up, no matter how bad things may seem. And don't ever give up on your brother. Remember; deep inside, he's still Wyatt, and as long as Wyatt is still there, he can still be saved. I hope that helps." She kissed his forehead, leaving her lips against his skin, "You've grown up into a handsome man, but you'll always be my baby boy. Goodbye, Chris, and keep on fighting." _

_Mom stepped back and disappeared in a swirl of bright white lights._

A small, sad smile graced Chris's face for a split second, a smile that did not go unnoticed by Piper.

"What is it, Chris?" Piper asked with a gentleness that reminded Chris of his Mom. He scoffed at his own thought. _Of course _Piper reminded Chris of Mom. They were still one body, and one soul, even if Piper hasn't yet shared the fourteen years with Chris that he vividly remembers and cherishes.

Chris looked away from her, knowing that if he saw her warm brown eyes, he would crack. "Nothing," he muttered, shrugging the question off like he wished he could shrug off the responsibility.

"Chris? Chris, look at me," Piper gently turned Chris's chin around, so that their faces were closer together than Chris felt comfortable. _You're not Mom, you're not Mom, you're not Mom . . . yet. _

"It feels better when you talk about what's bothering you. Otherwise, if you bottle it up inside, it'll explode and your feelings will be exposed when you don't want it to, in a _way _you don't want it to."

He was silent. She sounded so much like her. Hell, her _pep talks _were the same. Chris could feel tears brimming on the corner of his eye, turning everything wet and blurry.

Piper saw the tears, and instinctively hugged him. "It's okay; just let it out."

This was just too much for Chris. He found himself easily slipping back into his past, back into his mother's arms.

"It's not fair. He took everything from me. _Everything. _I want him back so bad; I want everything to be the way it is now, in this timeline. It's not perfect, but then it's not ruled by a tyrant, is it? It was so hard to come back, having to brace myself to face the older, cold Wyatt and see a little, innocent _toddler!" _Chris choked when he tried to laugh. "But then, the funny thing is, I _met _Bianca again because of Wyatt. He sent her after me. Right now, I'm afraid I'll have to do this alone, and that I'll forget her, what she looks like. But what scares me about the future is the possibility that I'll never meet her. I miss her so much."

Piper listened to this, holding on to Chris tightly. This felt different, being all motherly to a man in his twenties. It felt different, but natural to her all the same.

_**And you probably don't want to hear tomorrow's another day**_

_**But I promise you you'll see the sun again**_

_**And you're asking me why pain's the only way to happiness**_

_**And I promise you you'll see the sun again**_

_**And I promise you you'll see the sun again**_

"It seems like we're just meant to suffer," Chris muttered, breaking away from Piper's embrace.

"What are you talking about?" Piper blinked, confused.

Chris sighed. "Every time anything is happy, something always goes wrong. Someone always dies trying to do Good. And every time something bad happens, everyone must suffer pain and misfortune to fight their way back to a good time, only to have that good time stripped away again. It's a cycle of the retarded balance the Elders love so much."

"Chris, you can't think that." Piper said, surprised at his bleak outlook on the world, "Sure, there are good and bad times, but the point is that we get through it, as a family. And yeah, the Elders are stupid, but that's just because they're pompous. I mean, having your head up in the clouds for so long is bound to mess you up somehow, right?

"You have to have faith in the Good in the world. Things may seem bad now, but you shouldn't sit on you ass and do nothing. If you don't meet Bianca because Wyatt doesn't turn evil, then _go find her. _Don't get yourself killed because of her death; I'm sure she wouldn't want you to. I only met her for a few minutes, tops, but she didn't seem like the person who would want you to turn into Psychopath Chris. I promise you; things will get better, as long as you keep on fighting."

His lips turned upwards into a small smile, accepting this. As always, she was right.

"Thanks, Piper." Chris said with a sincere smile. He genuinely meant it.

Piper grinned wryly. "Don't you mean 'Thanks, _Mom_'?"

Chris snapped his head up in alarm. Panic settled in as he processed those words. How did she know? Did he slip up somehow while he was crying like a baby in her arms? Oh, god, she knew. His _entire plan _was screwed now.

"I don't know what you're talking about," he replied coldly, his eyes guarded.

Piper flinched at the rejection, making him feel slightly bad. "I heard you call me 'Mom,' Chris."

"When?" Chris demanded coolly, pretending that it didn't matter to him.

"When you were yelling at me and Leo back at P3. Your exact words, if I remember right, were 'Leave me the heck alone Mom!'"

Knowing he was busted, Chris slumped down on the bench and held his head in his hands. "This wasn't supposed to happen," he muttered. "You weren't supposed to know." Green eyes finally looked up at her, not angry, but defeated.

"Why, Chris? Why couldn't we know who you were? We would have helped, and not been so mean to you."

Chris shrugged. "Would you have believed me if I told it to you that I was your future, not yet conceived son that day, when the Titan froze Paige?"

"_Aunt _Paige, mister," Piper teased.

Chris grinned, despite himself. "Don't push it, Mom."

Piper smiled brightly at him addressing her that way. "Now, let's go rejoin the rest of the family, shall we?" She waved her hand at him, telling him to orb them both out of the park.

"No!" Chris shouted. "They can't know, Mom, they _can't! _You have to help me keep my secret."

"No," Piper said sternly. "We're going to handle the bad times as a _family, _and that includes you."

Chris sighed and closed his eyes, feeling the inner turmoil. Their plan, Bianca and Chris's plan, was to never tell them who he really was, that it'd complicate things. But as he was pondering about this, Chris could have sworn he heard a distinct whispering in the wind, a familiar voice that made his heart long for the woman to whom the voice belonged to.

_Listening and adapting are the keys to being an assassin, and to survival in a hard world. _

He felt that same feeling of partnership, the guiding hand that helped his unstable fingers, clutching the Phoenix athame, vanquish demon after demon. Chris looked up at the bright, blue, beautiful, unpolluted sky of San Francisco, and smiled. Bianca wasn't gone, and he'd make sure that they met each other again, in the new future.

Chris lightly touched his future mother's shoulder, and they disappeared in warm blue orbs, ready to face the world together . . . as a family.

**The End**


End file.
